Michigan
NCAA Semifinal
All Three Michigan Crews Advance to NCAA Petite Finals
5/30/2009 12:00:00 AM | Rowing
Site: Cherry Hill, N.J. (Cooper River)
Event: NCAA Championships (Semifinals)
U-M Heat Results: First Varsity Eight -- 4th place, advance to petite final
Second Varsity Eight -- 5th place, advance to petite final
First Varsity Eight -- 5th place, advance to petite final
Next U-M Event: Sunday, May 31 -- Finals at NCAA Championships (Cherry Hill, N.J.), 9:45 a.m.
Photo Gallery
CHERRY HILL, N.J. -- All three boats from the University of Michigan women's rowing team -- first varsity eight, second varsity eight and varsity four -- will compete in their respective petite finals on Sunday (May 31) at the NCAA Championships, following Saturday morning's (May 30) semifinal results. The No. 5-ranked first varsity eight took fourth in its semifinal, missing out on a spot in the grand final by one position, as the top-three finishers advance to the grand final. The second varsity eight and varsity four each placed fifth in their semifinals.
The semifinal that involved the Wolverines had a tumultuous beginning as the first attempt to start the race was called back when, in the breakage, Clemson's bow seat caught a crab and was ejected from her seat. After a 45-minute delay, the semifinal resumed. Crossing the 500-meter buoy, No. 1 Stanford had the narrow advantage, followed by No. 13 Washington, No. 4 Virginia and No. 10 Brown. No. 12 Clemson and Michigan were back of the top four crews. At 1,000 meters U-M was in fifth place, more than two lengths behind the leading Stanford boat and a boat and a half behind third-place Brown. Virginia was in second. The Wolverines walked through Washington and closed considerably on the Brown Bears in the third quarter of the race. Needing third place in order to reach the grand final, U-M sprinted early to catch Brown, but the Bears reacted swiftly and maintained their position by a full length at the finish line. Virginia won in 6:15.53, a bow ball ahead of Stanford (6:15.59). Michigan (6:26.92) was 11.39 seconds off the Cavaliers.
Michigan's second varsity eight semifinal was a four-boat race in the early stages. Brown and Yale were trading the lead, with Ohio State and Virginia just back. Michigan and Southern California were the last two boats through 500 meters. At 1,000 meters, Brown, Virginia and Yale were all within a few seats of one another, with OSU right with them. Sixth-place Michigan was two lengths behind third-place Yale. The Buckeyes caught a crab near 1,500 meters, which allowed Michigan to make up some ground, but U-M ultimately placed fifth in a time of 6:44.39. The three crews to advance to the grand final were Brown (6:28.85), Virginia (6:29.75) and Yale (6:31.92). OSU was fourth, 3.96 seconds ahead of Michigan, and USC took sixth.
Michigan's first varsity four was in sixth place at the 500-meter mark of its semifinal, open water behind the top three shells from Wisconsin, Stanford and California. U-M remained in sixth at the midpoint of the race but was within striking distance of fifth-place Ohio State and fourth-place USC. An excellent surge in the third 500 meters moved U-M through USC and two seconds behind third-place Stanford. Ohio State, which took fourth, and Stanford, which finished third, held off the Wolverines in the final sprint. Wisconsin (7:15.35) finished comfortably ahead of California (7:17.83). Michigan (7:22.19) was 6.84 seconds off the winning pace and 3.61 seconds behind Stanford for the last spot in the grand final.
Four of the 16 teams have all three of their boats in the grand finals: California, Stanford, Virginia and Yale.
The finals for the NCAA Championships will get underway at 9:45 a.m. on Sunday. U-M's varsity four petite final will run at 10 a.m., the second varsity eight petite final is set for 10:45 a.m., and the first varsity eight petite final will get underway at 11:30 a.m.
RESULTS (Day 2, Semifinals)
First Varsity Eight Semifinal 1 1. Virginia 6:15.53 C advance to grand final 2. Stanford 6:15.59 C advance to grand final 3. Brown 6:23.20 C advance to grand final 4. Michigan 6:26.92 C advance to petite final 5. Washington 6:30.28 C advance to petite final 6. Clemson 6:35.03 - advance to petite final Semifinal 2 1. California 6:12.87 C advance to grand final 2. Princeton 6:17.03 C advance to grand final 3. Yale 6:18.32 C advance to grand final 4. Southern Cal 6:20.69 C advance to petite final 5. Michigan State 6:24.44 C advance to petite final 6. Ohio State 6:29.45 - advance to petite final Second Varsity Eight Semifinal 1 1. Brown 6:28.85 C advance to grand final 2. Virginia 6:29.75 C advance to grand final 3. Yale 6:31.92 C advance to grand final 4. Ohio State 6:40.45 C advance to petite final 5. MICHIGAN 6:44.39 C advance to petite final 6. Southern Cal 6:47.88 - advance to petite final Semifinal 2 1. Stanford 6:27.08 C advance to grand final 2. Washington 6:28.61 C advance to grand final 3. California 6:29.66 C advance to grand final 4. Princeton 6:30.57 C advance to petite final 5. Michigan State 6:33.30 C advance to petite final 6. Clemson 6:50.09 - advance to petite final First Varsity Four Semifinal 1 1. Clemson 7:16.17 C advance to grand final 2. Yale 7:17.50 C advance to grand final 3. Virginia 7:18.28 C advance to grand final 4. Washington 7:19.17 C advance to petite final 5. Harvard 7:30.75 C advance to petite final 6. Brown 7:31.69 - advance to petite final Semifinal 2 1. Wisconsin 7:15.35 C advance to grand final 2. California 7:17.83 C advance to grand final 3. Stanford 7:18.58 C advance to grand final 4. Ohio State 7:19.95 C advance to petite final 5. MICHIGAN 7:22.19 C advance to petite final 6. Southern Cal 7:26.53 - advance to petite final
LINEUPS
First Varsity Eight -- Laura Dunn (coxswain), Melisa Ongun, Ashley Kroll, Adrienne Mecham, Karen Colwell, Felice Mueller, Emily Eiffert, Cristina Felix, Cate Trumble.
Second Varsity Eight -- Erica Macke (coxswain), Maggie Cooper, Natalie Eisermann, Ashley Jones, Kari Stenbakken, Sarah Gribler, Kate Strzalkowski, Casey Timmons, Liz McCannell.
First Varsity Four -- Jen Entin (coxswain), Ariel Piotter, Jordan Peek, Michela Musto, Julia Darnton.
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Mark Rothstein
On the semifinal results... "I thought that we raced a little bit better in our first varsity eight, but it wasn't enough to get into the grand final, which is disappointing. We're looking forward to our race tomorrow. I thought our second varsity eight raced great on Friday and then not quite as well today, so hopefully they'll get back on track tomorrow for the final. I thought our four raced pretty well. They were in a fast semi and didn't have enough to get in the grand final. We're in a position where if we have strong racing tomorrow we can finish pretty high in the team standings and that's our goal."
On the focus going into the finals... "Mathematically, there are probably only four teams that we can't beat, but realistically we're looking at something between sixth and 10th, maybe 12th at the worst. Obviously, we'd like to finish sixth, so we'll see what we can do."
Contact: Matt Trevor (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
